In 1971, Walt Disney World opened in Orlando, Florida and from there it has grown and changed over the years. Disney World is very iconic when it comes to all the Disney parks and it is the most popular of them all. While Disneyland might be the original theme park, it isn’t as legendary as World as World holds 4 different parks, 5 if you count the water park, Disney Springs, so many different hotels and resorts and it is the one place a sports players chants after winning a championship aka I’m Going to Disney World. With this is mind I know I made my first top 10 list ever about my favorite things to do in Disney World and to my credit it was one of my favorite lists to create. But I need that magic once again for this list as this is not going to be a list based off my opinion as it will be a list of many people’s opinions. This list will rank the 10 greatest rides in Walt Disney World. We have multiple parks to cover and so little time. Now some ground rules are to be applied as I am only listing current rides on this list. Also in order for them to be on the list the ride needs to be opened from this point, as of Aug 7th, 2020, the day I am writing this. Also this list will consist of popularity in the parks, wait time averages and the impact they left. Knowing that Disney World has been open for some time now and dealing with this pandemic has been hard for others who can’t travel I felt like the best medicine is to ride some Disney rides. Now we have waited in line long enough and I know you can smell the Mickey Mouse Hot Pretzels and Dole Whip. Let’s open the gates and welcome you all to this wonderful magical place and let’s rank the Top 10 Disney World Rides.
The Top 10 Disney World Rides
10. Rise of the Resistance (Hollywood Studios) – While the ride has only been open for less than a year it still somehow managed to gain so much popularity and just make it to the list. Rise of the Resistance can be found in Hollywood Studios in the land of Star Wars, better known as Galaxy’s Edge. Rise of the Resistance is a ride that is a dark ride but is also a trackless ride, motion simulator, a drop ride and has a walk through part. It also has one of the best themings you will ever see in a Disney park. The ride takes place during the new trilogies timeline, aka Force Awakens, Last Jedi and Rise of the Skywalker in case you never saw any of the new films from 2015 – 2019. The ride puts you into an altercation between the Resistance and the First Order as the First Order captures you and you must find your way out of their ship so you can escape. The ride includes many great effects and has some amazing audio animatronics including Kylo Ren, BB-8, Finn and Lieutenant Bek. The original cast returned for the ride as they reprised their roles. The ride is amazing and while I have never rode the ride yet I can say everyone that I follow on YouTube and Twitter that love Disney have said that this ride is amazing and is out of this world. I have seen enough videos to know how popular this ride is. As for wait time for the ride, it actually is kind of different. So instead of fastpasses, Disney decided for now to give this ride boarding passes due to the significant guests demand. The ride and land it lives on has impacted Hollywood Studios and Disney World really quickly as the ride is a must ride once you go to Disney World and it helped gain both World and Land a 2% increase at the domestic theme parks as stated in the fiscal first quarter of 2020. Even with a pandemic going on and social distancing going on in the parks, many guests still find their way to riding the ride and becoming a part of the Star Wars franchise. It’s crazy what Disney has done for this ride as it magically takes you into the world of Star Wars and without a doubt this ride will become one of Disney’s most iconic rides in the next 10 years. I don’t know about you but when the time does come of me going back to Disney World, the first thing I want to do is create my boarding pass to ride this ride and finally visit Galaxy’s Edge. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwHdn4_VTSk
9. Rock N Rollercoaster (Hollywood Studios) – Were going to stay in Hollywood Studios for now as we need to get ready for an Aerosmith concert. Rock N Rollercoaster opened in July 1999 and ever since then it has been one of the greatest rides in Disney World. The ride’s theming isn’t something that everyone talks about but I want to shout out the huge guitar that is a part of the ride’s show building. The ride has no back story like most rides on this list but it is centered on the guests being VIP’s to an Aerosmith concert. Yes this ride includes Aerosmith in the pre-show and the ride also includes multiple songs from the rock band. Now there are 5 different songs used in the ride as they include Walk This Way, Dude Looks like a Lady, Sweet Emotion, etc. Now the ride isn’t popular because of the rock band being included in the ride, but more so because the ride has a max speed of 57 mph and you literally get launched. Think of it like you are in a racecar and you go from 0 to 60 in 2 seconds, that’s how fast this ride is. But that’s not all as while you listen to some Aerosmith music and go on this thrill ride just remember that there are three inversions in which you go upside down and go into a corkscrew. I guess you can say you can Walk this Way into the bathroom after you ride. Okay all jokes aside while this ride is not something you would think of in Disney World it somehow manages to keep it’s place in Hollywood Studios as the ride themes well with the park and it’s one of the most popular rides in the park. I mean I would go on it again, but only because I want to hear some Aerosmith and go fast. I’m not a big upside down a rollercoaster type of guy but thankfully the ride is dark and you can’t see yourself going upside down. This isn’t something young ones would like but I do recommend it to everyone once they get a chance to ride. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSQs0YJ3iHU
8. Flight of Passage (Animal Kingdom) – Imagine being at home playing on your VR and going into the world of Pandora riding a Banshee. Now imagine doing that in Disney World’s Animal Kingdom as we take flight into the park’s most unique ride Flight of Passage. The ride is based off the film Avatar and the ride itself is a 3D flying simulator ride. The ride puts you into the world of Pandora and lets you ride on a native mountain Banshee. Now unlike most stimulator rides in the park like Star Tours and Soarin, this ride system is a bit different. You are on a motorcycle type of ride vehicle and it locks you in from the back as you are in a position like you are about to fly these creatures. The theming of the ride is also so amazing as before you even get the ride you need to go into a room where you are turned into an Avatar, which in my opinion is pretty awesome. The ride opened in May 2017 and ever since then it has gained a lot of popularity during the last few years. Guests increased in Animal Kingdom thanks to the opening of Pandora and both Navi River Journey and Flight of Passage continue to bring in guests. Flight of Passage has a long wait time however as it averages 65 – 75 minutes back in February 2020. As of right now during the social distancing the wait time has decreased to 30 minutes. While the wait time might be long I promise you it is worth the wait. If the pandemic didn’t happen I would say defiantly use a fastpass for this ride. There’s no other motion simulator ride like Flight of Passage in the parks so defiantly give it a try the next time you go to Disney World. Just a quick warning though I wouldn’t ride this ride if you get motion sickness. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SiLDQKvcIk
7. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (Magic Kingdom) – Let’s head to the Magic Kingdom now and RIDE THE WILDEST RIDE OF THE WILDERNESS! Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opened in September 1980 and can be found in Frontierland. The ride is a mine train roller coaster that has a top speed of 36 mph. It is considered one of the most popular rides in the Magic Kingdom and to many the best ride in the park. Now it has some amazing theming in the outside and even in the ride itself as when you ride this ride you feel like you are in the wilderness. The ride’s concept is based off of the 1800’s American Southwest. I think the main concept is about the Gold Rush era during the late 1800’s in the southwest and the way the ride is themed tells me the exact idea. I love this ride a lot as I remember riding the ride multiple times during my last trip in Disney World. The ride was designed by legendary Disney Imagineer Tony Baxter and it has found its way into multiple Disney parks due to its popularity. I feel like many people love this ride because of the thrill of the ride and the theming but also because it is not based off of any Disney character or Disney licensed film as it is a simple ride that has a great story concept that has a simple ride structure. Big Thunder averages a 35 – 40 minute wait time, which is pretty decent if you ask me and even with a pandemic it’s averages the same wait time then from the beginning of the year. The ride has left a huge impact to many and the ride continues to be an iconic ride for Disney World. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhc5A4O7f8Q
6. Slinky Dog Dash (Hollywood Studios) – Let’s head back to Hollywood Studios and finally go into Toy Story Land and ride Slinky Dog Dash. Based off of the Pixar film Toy Story, Slinky Dog Dash is a roller coaster with top speeds of 40 mph. It opened with the land on June 30th 2018 and ever since it opened it has gained much fanfare from guests. Actually now thinking about it this ride has become one of the most beloved rides in just the two years of running. The theming of this ride is probably my favorite when it comes to nostalgia as the ride’s theme is dedicated to toys as you can see many Easter eggs of the Toy Story films but also see different types of toys including board games, jenga, building blocks, Lincoln logs, crayons and so much more. Disney really out did itself with theming this ride and land for that matter as it makes you feel like you are a toy. Now when I first went on the ride back in 2018 the wait time was over 100 minutes but since then the average wait time is around 50 – 65 minutes, which isn’t too bad considering the fact that it is still a new ride and the best ride in the land. Without a doubt the ride is amazing and has a launch in the middle of the ride and a finale performance from an audio animatronic Wheezy Penguin from the Toy Story franchise. You’d be crazy to not want to go on this ride and I promise you it may look fast and bumpy but it is a pretty smooth ride from beginning to end. It’s a perfect rollercoaster for the kids to try for their first time and it is without a doubt one of the best rides in Disney World. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-_SNtQ6TJ4
5. Pirates of the Caribbean (Magic Kingdom) – It seems pretty low but this version of the POTC is the least favorite of the Disney fans. Many love the Shanghai or Disneyland version of this ride but that doesn’t mean this ride isn’t amazing in Disney World. The ride opened in Magic Kingdom in December 1973 and it has had multiple refurbishments towards show scenes, audio animatronics being added in and new effects. This is a must ride attraction when going to the Disney parks because of how iconic the ride is. Yes it’s not like the original Disneyland ride, even though it’s pretty much the same ride scenes just with a few added things, but it is a fun ride enjoyed by many guests and over the years since it opened it has become one of the most loved rides in the park. Now it usually doesn’t have a long wait time like most of these rides but in general the wait time averages from 25 minutes – 30 minutes. Everyone rides this ride of course to get out of the Florida heat and to stay cool but to also see Captain Jack Sparrow and the many pirate animatronics. Actually because the ride was popular in multiple parks Disney then decided to make a film adaptation and at this point there have been 5 Pirate films with a 6th one in the air as of right now Yeah there not all great but the films were so popular that in 2006 they added Jack Sparrow into the ride. Pirates of the Caribbean continues to evolve as each time there is a refurbishment to the ride it becomes even more popular and guests continue to praise the ride soon after they ride the new version of the ride. I think it’s safe to say POTC is one of the most iconic rides in Disney World. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89ZHefpHiq4
4. Splash Mountain (Magic Kingdom) – Let’s stay in Magic Kingdom and run to Frontierland and go on the legendary mountain of them all, Splash Mountain. This is Disney’s most iconic water ride as it has a 52 foot drop, so be prepared to get soaked on this ride. The ride is based off the characters of the now vaulted Disney film Song of the South. There is a reason I am brining this up but I will talk about it in a bit. Until then let’s talk about the ride’s impact and story. The ride is about Br’er Rabbit who leaves home for an adventure and is then followed by Br’er Fox and Br’er Bear. They try to capture Rabbit but fail. The ride includes multiple scenes of Audio Animatronics singing songs including the iconic finale song Zip a Dee Doo Dah. Now as for impact this ride is beloved by Disney fans and it is one of the most loved rides in the parks. The ride found it’s way into pop culture multiple times by either being parodied by The Simpsons and American Dad! or being a big influence for rapper Yung Gravy song with the title of the same name of the ride, I’m not even kidding that is a real thing. Now usually the average wait time for the ride is 35 – 45 minutes and with the pandemic going on it at the moment has a 30 – 35 minute wait time depending on the time of the day. Now let’s talk about the film itself and talk a bit more about what I mentioned earlier. Song of the South depicts racial stereotypes since the film’s main character is a black man who is depicted as a slave. The film became controversial after it’s release in 1946 and ever since it has been hidden in the Disney vault. More importantly in 2020 it was announced that Splash Mountain was going to be re-imagined into a ride for the 2009 Disney film The Princess and the Frog. Many speculated the change was due to the fact that the ride is based on the controversial film and with the events going on in June of the Black Lives Movement, but it was more because Disney wanted to include the film in the parks more. The idea was actually brought up in 2019 and it finally became announced in June 2020. Now ever since then the ride has been kind of cursed as it broke down multiple times and recently a ride vehicle drowned into the water. Regardless until the change finally does come Splash Mountain is by far one of the most iconic rides in the park. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnzxmOd3TGQ
3. Tower of Terror (Hollywood Studios) - You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension. A dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You're moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and imagination. You've just crossed over to... The Twilight Zone." Tower of Terror is inspired from Rod Sterling’s The Twilight Zone and it takes place in a fictional Hollywood Tower Hotel. It is a dark tower drop ride that will take your soul out of your body. The ride’s theming is amazing as when you see the Tower from far away you can tell how creepy and haunting it looks. But when you are up close with the tower and see the details added into the building and the outside attire you then realize the effort Disney went to make this ride come to life. The ride opened in July 1994 and it since has become the most popular attraction in Hollywood Studios. The ride cost Disney a pretty penny too as it cost 140 million dollars to bring this ride to life. The technology used in this ride is pretty amazing, even with the fact that this ride is 26 years old and has amazing effect and ride structure. In fact the ride used an actual elevator company to help create the ride system when the drop actually happens. The ride starts like a normal ride but once we get to the elevator part we then know its coming and then it happens you drop multiple times until the finale where you have the big drop. Originally it was just one drop but due to popularity, it changed to 5 drops. The max speed of the ride is 39 mph and I would not recommend putting the little one’s on this ride as it’s no elevator ride they will enjoy. Now usually Tower of Terror has a long wait time of anywhere from 60 – 80 minutes but due to the social distancing and the pandemic the average wait time at the moment is 35 – 40 minutes, but either way the wait is worth it when it comes to this amazing ride. Now the ride became so popular that it spawned three more versions of the ride in Disneyland, Disneyland Paris and Tokyo DisneySea however Disneyland’s version closed in 2017 as it was re-imagined to a Guardians of the Galaxy drop ride, which has become very popular in the park. Tower of Terror by far is very iconic and helped bring in guests to Hollywood Studios as before the ride came into the park there wasn’t much attendance in the park due to lack of rides, but once this E-ticket attraction arrived the park’s attendance increased in a big way. Tower of Terror has left a huge impact with the park and while most of the park has changed entirely, the most famous tower of Hollywood Studios has stayed the same and peacefully lurks its way to guests hearts and continues to become the most iconic ride in the park. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vh1WGq2-LD4
2. Expedition Everest (Animal Kingdom) – Alright well we just lost our soul in Tower of Terror maybe we should go on something slow. Well too bad because our next entry is one of the fastest rides in the park and the tallest ride building in Disney World. Expedition Everest is by far the greatest ride and attraction in Animal Kingdom and it has won many Disney guests hearts since it’s opening in 2006. It is my favorite ride in the park and the ride where I became concussed, not even joking. The ride is themed so beautifully as it truly looks like Mount Everest and the ride is centered on the Yeti. However as many know and I have heavily covered this in my lists that the Yeti audio animatronic does not fully function anymore as the structure holding in the ride was cracking thanks to the huge animatronic movement. So in the mean time the animatronic is known as Disco Yeti. But regardless even though the main centered reason for the ride is pretty much a club Disco ball, the main ride itself is incredible and out of this world. The ride reaches max speed of 50 mph and it has a huge drop and it has a part where it goes backwards. The ride is without a doubt an iconic ride that became iconic because of how popular it got within the first few years. The ride has an average wait time of 25 – 30 minutes as of right now but when the park is fully running and not dealing with a pandemic the ride has an average wait time of 75 minutes, which is worth the wait. Now before the ride opened, Animal Kingdom was probably the least visited park in Disney World. It was getting guests but when the big e-ticket attraction came to the park, guests would increase, so much so that if they close the ride to fix the structure so they could use a full functioning Yeti it could possibly hurt the park, even with the addition of Pandora. I think it would be worth the risk because deep down the ride is amazing but it would be superior with its main star fully working. But at this point it’s up in the air when the Yeti will be “fixed” and the ride hasn’t hurt from this problem and has been beloved by many guests since it opened and will continue to probably give me a concussion. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BoXGQqPYJ8
1. Haunted Mansion (Magic Kingdom) – By far the most iconic ride and much loved ride by Disney guests is the haunted manor that is resided by 999 happy haunts. The Haunted Mansion was an opening day attraction for the park and it has since become the most popular ride in the park and has even found its way to many guests number one favorite ride. The ride was already opened at that time in Disneyland and because of its popularity it was then decided to create the ride in Disney World. Many say that this version of the ride is the best version and while Disneyland does have a great ride that includes the legendary animatronic the Hat Box Ghost, Disney World’s theming, show building and scenes in the ride are done a bit better. Now the ride average wait time depends on the time of the day as it can be from anywhere from 30 minutes – 70 minutes. That’s how popular the ride is and that’s without the pandemic going on. With the pandemic the average wait time is less than 30 minutes, a pretty big change if you ask me. But regardless this slow dark ride is worth the wait as the ride’s story is amazing, the scenes are iconic and everyone knows when they were a little kid they were scared of the ride but in due time they became fans of the ride and would bring their kids into the ride. The ride has been in the Disney pop culture eye for quite some time, so much so it was able to get a film adaptation starring Eddie Murphy. While the film didn’t do so well critically, the ride continues to gain so much attention and even I can agree that Disney World would be a bit different without the spooky manor lurking from Liberty Square waiting for its next haunt. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tz8leDjCNmk
Now if you made it this far in our journey then you realized that for most of the video clips I used for the entries includes the social distancing protocols that is going on right now. It’s important to know that if you go to Disney World to always keep your distance, stay safe, wear a mask and make sure to listen to the protocols. The same should go for everywhere in the world. Now many people don’t agree with the fact that Disney opened all the parks during this time , especially Disney World since numbers were going up at the time in Florida but at the same time Disney has found a way to make sure the spread doesn’t happen in the most happiest and magical place on earth. It will be some time till we will be back to normal but just know that once it is Disney will be back on track and running normally. It will be a Happily Ever After in Disney World and all over the world soon, so just stay safe out there my friends.
Honorable Mentions
Space Mountain (Magic Kingdom) – Space Mountain is by far the most iconic ride in Tomorrowland in Magic Kingdom. The dark ride has some quick twist and turns and while it is one of the oldest rides in the park it still holds up very well to be one of the greatest rides in Disney World. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_cQz7nPaV4
Dinosaur (Animal Kingdom) – I have covered this ride enough on my top 10 lists to know how awesome this ride is. It’s the most underrated ride in Disney but it is one of the best rides Disney World has to offer. I mean what other ride in Disney can you visit Dinosaurs and also almost get hit with a meteor, metaphorically of course. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gj-tva7ihgs
Frozen Ever After (Epcot) – While some Disney fans were upset about Malestrom closing for a Frozen ride, others find this ride to be amazing and it holds some of the best audio animatronics in the park. Sure I might hate the film but my mind was blown going on this ride up close. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuDmGkhMWWs
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (Magic Kingdom) – This ride is a very amazing ride that includes some amazing audio animatronics. This roller coaster ride is without a doubt one of the best rides in the Magic Kingdom but also in Disney World. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io35tV0oyzw
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